TV stations, Magazines, and Newspapers across the country have done news
stories on toxic beds, and more are coming:

NBC Indianapolis, 2-14-08,
Sleeping with Danger
A very strong story: Patty Davis, a spokeswoman with the U.S. Consumer
Product Safety Commission, said the toxic chemicals do not get out of the
mattress. But then the reporter showed the CPSC report and said: "But that's
not what the CPSC's own scientific report says." The report shows toxic and
cancer causing chemicals do leach from mattresses and are absorbed by our
bodies. The story interviewed Dale Guyer, MD, who said he is now finding
Antimony in peoples bodies, one of the FR chemicals now being added to
mattresses. Guyer said. "This could be a potential serious health risk for a
lot of people and they aren't even aware of it. "They interviewed Amy Beechy,
who got sick from her mattress and said: "I
had flu like symptoms like fatigue, headaches, my eyes would burn,"
Beechy stopped sleeping on the mattress and immediately began to feel
better.

"At several factories around the country,
the people who make mattresses say they're suffering health problems, too.
WTHR talked to workers at a large mattress plant [Not Simmons] who say they
and dozens of their co-workers have gotten sick in the past eight months.
"We've seen rashes and skin irritations, headaches, sore throats..."
said one of the workers. "I've had nose bleeds, bronchitis, and
coughing," said another. "It's happening to lots of us and it's just
been getting worse." They say all the health problems began last year
when they started making mattresses that pass the government's new flame
test. When asked if they would purchase and sleep on a mattress made at
their factory, the workers said they would not."

Like most stories they also interviewed
Mark Strobel who has led the fight against the regulation, and they
concluded by telling people the only way to get a chemical free mattress is
by prescription.

"What Might Be In Your Mattress? Could Mattress
Safety Measures Make You Sick?

The story interviewed Dr. Doris Rapp,
MD, who says unsafe, several Simmons mattress factory employees who are
getting sick just from handling the new flame retardant materials, Serta who
admits using Boric Acid, and Mark Strobel who has campaigned and generated
news against the new flameproof mattress regulation for four years.

The CBS story quotes several Simmons
mattress factory employees complaining of "Breathing Problems, Sharp
Chest Pains, Sinus Problems, Irritated Eyes, Chronic Sore Throats, Bloody
Noses, and Painful Skin Rashes." In one scene a Simmons executive says
they offer employees protection as the reporter picks up a dust
mask/respirator. The only thing wrong in the story was that they said
"Manufacturers have to tell you what chemicals are in the mattress, but you
have to ask." This is simply untrue, there are no labeling requirements, and
a Simmons executive they interviewed said "We don't want to put our recipe
out there." The story concludes by telling people the only way to get a
chemical free mattress is by prescription.

CBS New York,12-20-07"New Fire Retardant Mattresses Source Of
Toxins"
Thestory interviews Joan Kramer who with her
husband became sick from their new mattress, Emily Main of The Green Guide,
and Simmons mattress factory employees who also became sick from the FR
materials. It is a good story exposing the risks except they reported
organic mattresses pass the open flame test with wool. Wool actually burns
and will not pass the test. See (Wool
Burns)See the New York video at:http://wcbstv.com/video/?id=106511@wcbs.dayport.com

CBS Boston, 11-8-07"Chemicals
Prompt Concern About Mattress Standard",CPSC says Children absorb 63 times more Poison from
flameproof mattresses than the EPA says is safe.

The Boston news story interviewed Liz
Harriman, of the Toxic Use Reduction Institute at University of
Massachusetts Lowell, Cindy Luppi, of the Alliance for a Healthy Tomorrow,
and concluded with a Mother named Gwendolyn Atwood. All are concerned about
the toxic chemicals now being added to mattresses

CBS Boston also interviewed Ron Trainer of
ISPA (the mattress manufactures association) who admitted manufacturers do
use Antimony, but then he misstated the facts by saying Antimony could not
get out of mattresses, and that testing proved it did not get out. In fact,
the government proved Antimony and more does leach to the surface of
mattresses in large quantities.

The CPSC proved these chemicals leach to
the surface of mattresses and measured significant amounts of toxins
contacting our bodies.

The CPSC says five year old children
will absorb .5 mg Antimony (Arsenic) from flameproof mattresses, every
night. This is 63 times more Poison than the EPA say is safe! They also
say the average adult will absorb .8 mg Antimony every night, and this is 27
times more poison than the EPA says is safe. Antimony is one of the acutely
toxic heavy metals (lead, mercury, arsenic, antimony) and is also known to
cause cancer.
See the CBS Boston video at:
http://wbztv.com/video/?id=44507@wbz.dayport.com

CBS Philadelphia,"Sick Mattresses", 10-11-07
The story was similar to the CBS Chicago story as mattress factory employees
complained of "Irritated Eyes, Chronic Sore Throats, Bloody Noses, and
Painful Skin Rashes."

ABC Cincinnati, "Sleeping With Danger"
5-5-08Another strong story: "It sometimes is the only thing that will
eradicate roaches from a building," explains retired Cincinnati Fire Chief
Bill Kramer, now University of Cincinnati fire science professor. "It would
not be something I would use as a first choice to create a flame retardant
for a mattress." He fears the flame-retardant chemicals in new mattresses
could do more harm than good. "In their zeal to protect us from ourselves,
some of these government agencies can go too far," Kramer said. "Sometimes,
the cure they come up with is worse than the malady it's designed to
correct." In truth, no one knows the long term effects of sleeping every
night a fraction of an inch from boric acid, antimony and other toxic flame
retardants, and that unknown is what worries fire science professor Bill
Kramer. "I was a Marine Corps officer during the Vietnam era," Kramer said.
"And it took us many decades to realize the effects of Agent Orange. I would
certainly not like to see something like that transpire here."

[Mark Strobel - Mattress Manufacturer]
"There's a lot of double talk in the mattress industry, but there's no
chemical-free systems that pass this test.'

But the CPSC admits that some of the toxins
are absorbed by the body every night. And a review lab hired by the agency
found serious flaws in its methodology.. questioning how the CPSC could
simulate a lifetime of exposure.. the lab also questioned how the CPSC
scientists decided on a higher maximum daily dose of antimony than other
government agencies allow.

[Mark Strobel - Mattress Manufacturer]
"They made the assumption all children under five will sleep on vinyl sheets
due to bed wetting problems and that's going to protect them from the toxic
chemicals in their mattress."

Royal Oak toxicologist Dr. Michael Harbut
says if you have a waterproof mattress pad – or plastic -- on your bed – you
can minimize your exposure to these chemicals.

[Dr. Michael Harbut/Toxicologist] “Until we
really know for sure that they’re completely safe, it’s probably a good idea
to be prudent. Put on a mattress pad, seal up the mattress, be safe – don’t
sleep on a bare mattress.”

The only way to get a new mattress without
any flame retardant is by prescription. If your doctor or chiropractor
prescribes a chemical-free bed.. some companies can make them for you –but
it can be costly.

Meanwhile.. even if you ask.. manufacturers
and retailers are *not* required to tell you if your mattress has toxins
inside.

But mattress manufacturer Mark Strobel
said, "We continually find these flame retardants are harmful. [Federal
regulators] ban them one after the other".

Allergist Dr. Leonard Rubinstein admits the
flame retardant chemicals might have a worthwhile effect, they also have the
potential to harm the respiratory system. "Patients are often developing eye
or skin irritation from sitting in contact with these chemicals that leach
out. We are also seeing patients having headaches or neurological symptoms
from some of these aromatics", said Rubinstein.

She grew up on an island off the coast of
Maine, but when Hannah Pingree had her blood tested, she found 19 different
flame retardant chemicals in her system.

"If I have it, you have it, we all have
it," Pingree said.

We all have it, because for 30 years,
flame-retardant chemicals - hundreds of millions of pounds of them - have
been embedded in furniture and consumer products, in an effort to slow down
fires and reduce deaths and injuries.

They show video of mattress manufacturing
and the new mattress open flame test.

The mattress factory video is the same as
used in the NBC Indianapolis Toxic mattress story where the workers report
getting sick from the flame retardant chemicals in the mattresses.

NBC Kansas City, "Sleeping With Danger,"
4-24-08
"I did have a new mattress for a while and I did have a pretty bad reaction
to it," Kansas City native Richard Thompson said. ... "The research picture
is still unclear," Children's Mercy Hospital environmental health hygienist
Kevin Kennedy said. Right now, no federal law requires the maker of any
mattress to list flame-retardant chemicals on a mattress label, but some
experts say people need to know these chemicals exist in case they notice
health trouble. "The more we can help them reduce that complex mix of things
they're exposed to…the more healthy and more normal a life they can lead,"
Kennedy said. "This is close, chronic exposure, and it becomes a huge risk,"
Strobel said.
http://www.nbcactionnews.com/content/investigative/story.aspx?content_id=3b215cd2-d8a4-4b2f-adff-8738fbd0e780

Chicago Tribune,
Chicago IL, July 1 2007, got admissions from industry and top
manufacturers that they really are using toxic chemicals to flameproof
mattresses including, Antimony Trioxide (Arsenic), Boric Acid (Roach
Killer), Silica Glass, and Ammonium Polyphosphate (Ammonia). Plus she quoted
several top scientists and doctors who say this is unsafe. They also told
people there is an alternative in prescription mattresses that are toxin
free and allowed by the regulation.
Selected quotes and link to Chicago Tribune story

CBS Indianapolis, 2-14-08, Sleep Concerns - A Special Report

This story interviews yet another person
sick from their mattress, Cheryl Anderson, who said two different mattresses
make her sick with fever and skin rashes. The story discusses Antimony, a
probable carcinogen, being added to mattresses and that toxic chemicals are
required to pass the new open flame test. Plus they told people the only way
to get a chemical free mattress is with a Doctor's prescription. It
concludes by telling people children under age five were not studied by the
CPSC, as they assumed all these children would sleep on vinyl sheets, and
that this would protect them from the toxic chemicals in their mattresses.

CBS Sacramento, 11-2-07Chemicals in Mattresses: The story was similar to the CBS Chicago story as mattress factory employees
complained of "Irritated Eyes, Chronic Sore Throats, Bloody Noses, and
Painful Skin Rashes."

ABC
Louisville, "It's like sleeping on rat poison", 10-23-07
"Health experts believe that children up to six years old are most at risk
because their vital organs and immune system are still developing." (The
CPSC excluded children under five from their study by assuming all will
sleep on vinyl sheets due to bedwetting problems, and that this would
protect them from the toxic chemicals in their mattresses.) See:
CPSC risk assessmentSee video of story:
http://www.whas11.com/news/consumer/stories/102307whasjdlocalchemicalss.19d3aa9ab.html

American Chiropractic Association
magazine July-07 article titled:"New Open-Flame Mattress Standards Under Fire, Consumers Offered an
Alternative Through Chiropractic Prescription" “CPSC predicted that
every night consumers would absorb .081 mg of boric acid and .802 mg of
antimony, in addition to smaller amounts of several other potent chemicals.
“This amount of antimony is 27 times more than the Environmental Protection
Agency says is safe: .03 mg,””
http://www.acatoday.org/content_css.cfm?CID=2418

Bonnie Rogoff column, Good chemistry and bed chemistry,August 26, 2007
"A new epidemic that is killing cats in their twilight years, caused by
chemical flame retardants … Ironically, mattress workers are coming forward
and admitting they are getting sick simply handling the new chemically-laden
materials, but the “S” bedding giants such as Sealy, Serta and Simmons
remain tight-lipped about the chemicals contained in their beds. … To put
millions of lives at risk to save a few is unconscionable."

The American Chiropractor, November 2006 issue,a non-profit medical journal."EPA Proves Flameproof Mattresses Toxic"After verifying the facts, a medical journal published this article. The
article is reprinted from "The American Chiropractor" magazine, a non-profit
medical journal. It appeared in the November 2006 issue pages 54-55. It
is mailed to about 40,000 Chiropractors across the United States.
To see a scanned version of how the article appeared in the magazine as a
PDF file
click here.

American Chiropractic Association
magazine July-07 article titled:"New Open-Flame Mattress Standards Under Fire, Consumers Offered an
Alternative Through Chiropractic Prescription" “CPSC predicted that
every night consumers would absorb .081 mg of boric acid and .802 mg of
antimony, in addition to smaller amounts of several other potent chemicals.
“This amount of antimony is 27 times more than the Environmental Protection
Agency says is safe: .03 mg,””http://www.acatoday.org/content_css.cfm?CID=2418

The American Chiropractor, June 2008 issue,a non-profit medical journal.
Federal Flameproof Mattress Regulation Creates New Health Risk -- Sleepers
and Workers SickSee the PDF file as reprinted from the
magazine by
clicking here.

Books:

“Is your new mattress safe?”

An in-depth special report of problems about
mattresses, especially those manufactured since 7/1/07

by Doris J Rapp, M.D.

Doris J. Rapp, MD, F.A.A.A., F.A.A.P. Is a
board-certified environmental medical specialist and pediatric allergist.
She was a clinical assistant professor of pediatrics at the State University
of New York at Buffalo. Dr. Rapp is the founder of the Practical Allergy
Foundation and is a past President of the American Academy of Environmental
Medicine. She is also the author of several books, and a New York Times Best
Selling Author.

The book primarily address the risks from
the new fire retardant chemicals in new mattresses.

[Industry has previously admitted they use chemicals including Boric Acid to
the Washington Post and others. Kevlar is used in the yellow thread you see
on the perimeter of the mattress to hold it together, but this is not the
flameproofing system. The CPSC report
table 1
proves the cotton batting flameproofing system contains 7.5% Boric Acid and
2.4% Antimony. With no labeling requirements, it is typical for mattress
makers to deny using chemicals!]
http://www.10news.com/news/7131615/detail.html 2/16/06

"This is no sleeper issue. ... The issue is an important one because almost
everyone sleeps on a mattress. And it's big business, with about 25 million
new mattresses sold annually, most made by U.S. companies."

The Washington Post story was picked up by many newspapers across the
country, and the issue is being featured by major market TV affiliates of
CBS, FOX, and ABC.

A
new law already effective in California and being enacted nationwide by
Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) requires mattresses to resist
ignition from open flames.

While the CPSC and Industry public statements say these chemical systems are
safe, the written word of the CPSC in their draft law says otherwise. They
admit these systems have never been studied, are ‘acutely toxic’, a
‘reproductive and developmental toxin’, and more study is needed. They do
say they are getting exposure data and studying them now, but we fear study
will not be complete before this law is enacted and that they are trying to
justify a preexisting conclusion.

With the safety verdict still out, all new mattresses sold in California,
and millions nationwide contain toxic chemical flame proofing systems. At
least one major brand has fire proofing systems on all their new mattresses
nationwide.

Manufacturers, and consumers with no labeling information, must choose from
one of four basic chemical systems under the ticking to meet law: 1) Boric
Acid with Antimony. 2) Polyester with Antimony. 3) Fiberglass with Antimony.
4) Melamine with Formaldehyde. All four systems contain chemicals linked
to cancer. Antimony causes heart muscle damage, and can cause the heart
to beat irregularly or stop, and a single dermal application has killed
rabbits. Europe has proven Antimony leaches from mattresses and it has been
found in livers of dissected human infants.

Quoting the Washington
Post:
“Serta, the second-largest U.S. manufacturer, has been using a fire-blocking
system on all its products since January [2005] that uses a blend of natural and
synthetic fibers as well as chemicals. …"There is an infinitesimal level of
boric acid available on the surface of mattresses," he [Serta] said.” We strongly
disagree with the amount and safety of Boric Acid in mattresses. Our
government says Boric Acid leaches from mattresses. There can be over one
million milligrams of water soluble Boric Acid as loose dust in the surface
of a mattress. As the oils in the cotton batting dry out over time much more
Boric Acid will be released to kick up into our faces to breathe and absorb
by our bodies. Boric Acid is poison, is used as Roach Killer, and the CPSC
calls it ‘acutely toxic.’ There are 6,463 cases of Boric Acid poisoning
in the US each year. We have found at least one case where an 11-year old
child with chronic skin rash appears to be poisoned by boric acid in a
mattress. In addition to Inhalation, skin, and damaged skin absorption, it
appears children could be poisoned by sucking on a mattress.

The CPSC notified California their law is invalid and unenforceable since
there is an existing federal flammability law (cigarette ignition).
California chooses to enforce it anyway. A lawsuit on a single point of law
could stop California, federal law preempts state law. But we still have to
stop the CPSC. The largest mattress companies pushed for and want this law
for their own benefit. Now ISPA’s largest members, Leggett & Platt, Sealy,
and Serta recently withdrew their membership.

"In 2000, the National Academy of Sciences
recommended that antimony -- the most commonly used fire retardant -- be
banned in upholstered furniture. That recommendation was based on a 1998
European study that linked the chemical in crib mattresses to sudden infant
death syndrome."

Unfortunately
they charge you $1.50 to view the entire article. All the other news links
on our site are free.www.dispatch.com

4/28/05 "The flames engulfed one mattress, but not the
Serta mattress treated with a flame retardant ... Serta uses small
amounts of Boric Acid or Boron ... While other mattress makers do offer
similar flame retardant products in California, Serta is the only company to
use a flame retardant system on it's entire line of mattresses across the
country." Our health risk other side of the story also got
good coverage, and the story asks, is it safe, and is the benefit worth the
risk? Fox59 TV in Indianapolis ran the story.
See the story by Fox59 TV in Indianapolis, it ran as a two minute TV
segment, but you can see the printed version on the Fox website by clicking
here.

We talked to James Mowry, quoted in the
story, who cited a study by the National Academy of Science. He said he was
referring to a review done on flame retardants in upholstered furniture, not
mattresses, and based his comments on the exposure data amount quoted by the
reporter (data presumably provided by Serta). Further it looked at Zinc
Borate back coated to upholstery fabric, not boric acid powder as loose dust
in mattresses, and the amount of chemical used in mattresses is 7.5 times
more than that in the fabric per sq/cm. (more details)

Interestingly, this review had some data
for Antimony and warned against Antimony as a flame retardant for
upholstered furniture.

Their grape juice comparison seems a wildly
broad statement. At one hundred times more than in a year means you would
absorb only .003 mg in a year. You would likely breathe more than this in a
single breath while just being in the room with one of these mattresses. Our
analysis shows the
mattress contains
3.8 Million times more boron (found in boric acid) than found in a 6 oz glass of grape juice
(.3 mg.).

By comparison, you
would have to drink over 200 glasses of grape juice, about 10 gallons, every
day for 50 years to equal the amount of Boric Acid in a mattress.

The San Francisco
Chronicle,
3/2/05, Home Editor, Laura Thomas, did a 1500 word article
exposing the health risks of toxic chemicals being used in mattresses to
meet a new open flame resistance law. The new law is already effective in
California and is being enacted nationwide by the Consumer Products Safety
Commission within the next year.

Laura did a great job of telling a balanced story from what people told her.
But this illustrates the problem we face. Proponents whitewash the chemical
issue and say they don’t use chemicals. The CPSC’s proposed law lists the
various systems used to meet the standard, and their chemical content. A
review of this document will prove the proponents statements wrong.

Neither the CPSC nor I have yet found a barrier system that does not require
dangerous chemicals. See quotable truths on chemicals in mattresses, pages
138 to 162 of the CPSC draft of this new law. See quotes and links to this
document:
http://www.peopleforcleanbeds.org/Quotes-CPSC.htm

See
full rebuttals of proponents statements in the San Francisco Chronicle
Article by clicking here

The Louisville
Kentucky, Courier-Journalnewspaper ran a shortened version of the
Washington Post story on page A-19 on Sunday May 22. They omitted the parts
about Serta, ISPA, and Davis. They don't post the story on their website.

Many other newspapers
across the country ran the Washington Post article, but most don't post
other newspapers articles on their website.

The Courier-Journal:
Mattress maker targets 'clean' niche, August
21, 2006 •• 978 words •• ID:
lou33451826 Strobel leaves out fire retardant chemicals By Bill Wolfe bwolfe@courier-journal.com
For nearly two years, Jeffersonville, Ind., mattress maker Mark Strobel
fought a federal proposal for tougher fire standards for his industry. The
new rules, he argued, would lead companies to lace bedding with toxic
fire-retardant chemicals such as boric acid and antimony.

The articles below tell the story. While
the articles are copyrighted, News media are free to use and edit the
articles to their liking. We only ask to be informed if you publish an
article:

Article 1
A short 500 word version that tells the highlights of the story.

Article 3
A 3,000 word article that tells more of the story including how the
innerspring mattress industry ask for and supported the new California law
and national regulation, and how it benefits them. Plus it tells the US
Consumer Products Safety Commission side of the story, and how it will cost
consumers 1.11 Billion dollars, and limit liability for mattress
manufacturers. It tries to tell a balanced story and gives background
information of the chemical risks and how we made toxic mistakes in the
past.

Please see the facts first hand:Proof pages for
media.pdf
This collection includes selected highlighted pages from the CPSC risk
assessment that prove the chemicals really used in mattresses, that we will
absorb toxins, that they excluded children under age five, the problems and
omissions in the report and how their conclusions are invalid from a report
designed to reach a preexisting conclusion. Plus there are Doctor comments
and public comments from people who have gotten sick from flameproof
mattress, and more.

For best results print this
page in Landscape mode, or click here
for printer friendly version.

Notice: The statements and questions contained in this
notice are not intended to convey allegations regarding any particular company,
person, or association. Readers should conduct their own investigation of a
company or association or person to ascertain the particular policies,
practices, and motivations of that entity. I have reported what I believe to be
true and correct to the best of my knowledge and opinion at the time of its
writing in a free speech effort to avert a public health disaster.